Hey everyone! So for those curious, we have been very busy lately. Not just with training for the Buffalo Half Marathon Memorial weekend, but life in general. Our site here took a backseat last week to warm weather and house projects.

The other half and I agreed it was time for some changes around our property. The first project was a new fire pit!

We had an old 6′ x 6′ patio with a round removable fire pit – but years of use and weather pretty much ruined it. The patio stones were cracked and just an eye sore in general.

The 'before' photo

So we went to work removing the old patio, leveling the ground and compacting the earth to prep for the new pit. After leveling, weed block was added followed by about two inches of Patio Paver Base. More leveling…more compacting.

Finally we were ready to lay some block. My years building retaining wall projects as a teenager came in very handy during this project. Anyone who has ever laid any type of patio or stone, like brick, will tell you the first course (layer) is the most important. Our oldest child was very good at supervising, a natural really, as he ordered me where to put each brick!

Our oldest left his mark on the pit with his blue shovel!

The next layers flew up quickly, as the pit is not too large. The final layers were added, checked for level and then disassembled like a puzzle. We then added a bead of construction adhesive to each layer to prevent it from falling in on itself if someone runs into it – perhaps after an adult beverage.

The fire pit was almost complete. We decided to surround the pit with one row of patio stone to act as type of hearth, if you will. Plus it will make mowing much easier! The whole project took about four hours over two days. We can’t wait to use it!The 'after' photo

We spent time working on our yard, planting flowers and making it look beautiful. We also worked inside our home giving our kitchen a fresh look. Finally, we purchased our first set of patio furniture. We have only had it a couple days but are already giving it tons of use.

That’s it! I think? We plan to get back into the blog in the coming days and weeks and we invite you to follow us on Twitter to see behind the scenes information and photos from our upcoming race weekend in Buffalo, NY.

We hope you’re enjoying spring. What was the first project on your list?